Course: Combined Science + Separate Physics | 20 questions | ← All quizzes
Write A, B, C or D for each question, then tap Show answer to mark it.
Q1 (F, recall) How are the particles arranged in a solid?
A. Far apart and moving randomly
B. Close together in a regular pattern, vibrating about fixed positions
C. Close together in a random arrangement, moving around each other
D. Far apart in a regular pattern
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✅ B
A describes a gas and C describes a liquid.
Q2 (F, definition) What is density?
A. The weight of an object
B. The volume of 1 kg of a material
C. How heavy an object feels
D. Mass per unit volume
Show answer
✅ D. Mass per unit volume
ρ = m ÷ V, measured in kg/m³.
Q3 (F, calculation) A block of aluminium has a mass of 2.7 kg and a volume of 0.0010 m³. What is its density?
A. 0.00037 kg/m³
B. 2.7 kg/m³
C. 2700 kg/m³
D. 0.0027 kg/m³
Show answer
✅ C. 2700 kg/m³
F: ρ = m ÷ V
I: ρ = 2.7 ÷ 0.0010
A: 2700 kg/m³
Examiner tip: 0.00037 comes from dividing volume by mass – the equation the wrong way round.
Q4 (F, recall) What is the name of the change of state from gas to liquid?
A. Condensing
B. Evaporating
C. Sublimating
D. Freezing
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✅ A. Condensing
Q5 (F, application) 250 g of ice melts completely. What is the mass of the water produced?
A. Less than 250 g
B. More than 250 g
C. 250 g
D. It depends on the temperature
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✅ C. 250 g
Mass is conserved in a change of state because the number of particles doesn’t change.
Examiner tip: a change of state is a physical change – it can be reversed.
Q6 (F, definition) What is internal energy?
A. The kinetic energy of the particles only
B. The total kinetic energy and potential energy of all the particles in a system
C. The temperature of a substance
D. The energy needed to melt a substance
Show answer
✅ B
Examiner tip: temperature is not the same as internal energy. Temperature is linked only to the average kinetic energy of the particles.
Q7 (F/H, graph) A heating curve for ice has a flat section at 0 °C. What is happening during this flat section?
A. The ice is cooling down
B. No energy is being supplied
C. The particles are gaining kinetic energy
D. The ice is melting and the temperature stays constant
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✅ D
Energy is still being supplied, but it is used to break the bonds between particles (increasing their potential energy), so the temperature doesn’t rise.
Examiner tip: for top marks, link the flat section to potential energy, and the sloping sections to kinetic energy.
Q8 (F/H, calculation) How much energy is needed to melt 0.40 kg of ice at 0 °C? (Specific latent heat of fusion of ice = 334 000 J/kg)
A. 1.3 × 10⁵ J
B. 8.4 × 10⁵ J
C. 1.2 × 10⁻⁶ J
D. 1.3 × 10³ J
Show answer
✅ A. 1.3 × 10⁵ J
F: E = m L
I: E = 0.40 × 334 000
A: 133 600 J = 1.3 × 10⁵ J (2 s.f.)
Examiner tip: 8.4 × 10⁵ J comes from dividing L by m instead of multiplying.
Q9 (F/H, definition) What is the specific latent heat of vaporisation?
A. The energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 kg of liquid by 1 °C
B. The energy needed to change 1 kg of a solid into a liquid
C. The energy needed to change 1 kg of a liquid into a vapour with no change in temperature
D. The temperature at which a liquid boils
Show answer
✅ C
B is the latent heat of fusion; A is specific heat capacity.
Q10 (F/H, practical) How can you measure the volume of an irregularly shaped stone?
A. Measure its length, width and height with a ruler
B. Lower it into a displacement (eureka) can and measure the volume of water that overflows
C. Weigh it on a top-pan balance
D. Divide its mass by 1000
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✅ B
The volume of water displaced equals the volume of the stone.
Examiner tip: read the measuring cylinder at eye level, from the bottom of the meniscus.
Q11 (F/H, practical) A stone of mass 150 g displaces 60 cm³ of water. What is its density?
A. 0.40 g/cm³
B. 90 g/cm³
C. 9000 g/cm³
D. 2.5 g/cm³
Show answer
✅ D. 2.5 g/cm³
F: ρ = m ÷ V
I: ρ = 150 ÷ 60
A: 2.5 g/cm³ (= 2500 kg/m³)
Q12 (F/H, application) A sealed can of gas is heated. Why does the pressure inside increase?
A. The particles move faster, so they hit the walls more often and with more force
B. The particles get bigger
C. The particles vibrate faster about fixed positions
D. The number of particles increases
Show answer
✅ A
More frequent, harder collisions mean a greater force per unit area on the walls.
Examiner tip: say “more frequent collisions” (more per second), not just “more collisions”. Gas particles don’t vibrate about fixed positions.
Q13 (F/H, recall) The temperature of a gas is related to which property of its particles?
A. Their size
B. Their total potential energy
C. Their average kinetic energy
D. Their number
Show answer
✅ C. Their average kinetic energy
Q14 (S only, calculation) A gas has a pressure of 120 kPa in a volume of 3.0 litres. It is compressed to 1.5 litres at constant temperature. What is the new pressure?
A. 60 kPa
B. 240 kPa
C. 360 kPa
D. 123 kPa
Show answer
✅ B. 240 kPa
F: p₁V₁ = p₂V₂ (pV = constant)
I: 120 × 3.0 = p₂ × 1.5
F: p₂ = 360 ÷ 1.5
A: 240 kPa
Examiner tip: halving the volume doubles the pressure. You don’t need to convert units, as long as both sides use the same ones.
Q15 (S only, H, application) Why does a bicycle pump get warm when you pump up a tyre quickly?
A. Friction between the air particles
B. The air is compressed into a smaller space, so it becomes denser
C. Energy is lost from your hands
D. Work is done on the gas, increasing its internal energy and temperature
Show answer
✅ D
Pushing the piston does work on the gas. This transfers energy to the gas, increasing its internal energy, so its temperature rises.
Q16 (F/H, definition) What is the difference between specific heat capacity and specific latent heat?
A. Specific heat capacity is about changing temperature; specific latent heat is about changing state with no temperature change
B. They are the same thing
C. Specific heat capacity is about melting; specific latent heat is about boiling
D. Specific latent heat only applies to water
Show answer
✅ A
Use ΔE = mcΔθ for a temperature change and E = mL for a change of state.
Q17 (F/H, graph) A cooling curve for liquid wax shows the temperature falling from 80 °C, staying level at 55 °C for 4 minutes, then falling again. What is the freezing point of the wax?
A. 80 °C
B. 67 °C
C. 55 °C
D. 0 °C
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✅ C. 55 °C
The temperature stays constant while the wax changes state (freezes).
Examiner tip: the freezing point and melting point of a substance are the same temperature.
Q18 (H, calculation) 1.13 × 10⁶ J of energy boils away 0.50 kg of water at 100 °C. What is the specific latent heat of vaporisation of water?
A. 5.65 × 10⁵ J/kg
B. 2.26 × 10⁶ J/kg
C. 1.13 × 10⁶ J/kg
D. 4.4 × 10⁻⁷ J/kg
Show answer
✅ B. 2.26 × 10⁶ J/kg
F: E = m L
I: 1.13 × 10⁶ = 0.50 × L
F: L = 1.13 × 10⁶ ÷ 0.50
A: 2.26 × 10⁶ J/kg
Examiner tip: in an experiment, use the change in mass (the mass that boiled away).
Q19 (F/H, application) Why is steam much less dense than water?
A. Steam particles are smaller
B. Steam particles are lighter
C. Steam has fewer atoms in each molecule
D. The particles in steam are much further apart
Show answer
✅ D
The particles are the same, but in a gas they are far apart, so there is less mass in the same volume.
Q20 (S only, application) A gas is squashed into a smaller volume at constant temperature. Why does its pressure increase?
A. The particles hit the walls more often
B. The particles move faster
C. The particles get hotter
D. The particles become heavier
Show answer
✅ A
The temperature is constant, so the particles’ speed doesn’t change. But with less space, they collide with the walls more frequently, giving a greater force per unit area.
Your score
Add up your marks out of 20 and multiply by 5 to get a percentage. Rough guide (not an official grade): 18–20 excellent, grade 8–9 standard | 14–17 grade 6–7 | 10–13 grade 4–5 | under 10 revise the notes and try again.
Answer key (for teachers and printing)
1 B 2 D 3 C 4 A 5 C 6 B 7 D 8 A 9 C 10 B 11 D 12 A 13 C 14 B 15 D 16 A 17 C 18 B 19 D 20 A
Revise: Particle model topic page | Fill the gaps: Particle model | Which equation? Particle model
